Nakamichi Sport Wireless Headset NEP-BTSPORTS05

Nakamichi launched its first wireless Bluetooth fitness headset for workouts and sports, coated with liquid repellent coating for water and sweat proof. While I have reviewed a handful of sports headsets, I felt that this headset is worth my recommendation with a selling price at a low-$100.

1. Design

The Nakamichi BTSPORTS05 headset might appear huge, but thanks to the earhooks, they stick to your ears comfortably and do not fall off.

The Nakamichi Bluetooth sports earbuds feature a Nano Coating by Liquipel Technology, a liquid repellent protective coating that allows the earbuds to be water and sweat proof. Liquipel is a specialized process that applies a liquid repellent substance to electronic devices. Liquipel’s Watersafe technology provides protection against 80% of all liquid damage scenarios without the use of a case. Accidental spills, splashes and brief shallow submersion is no longer a threat to electronic devices.

2. Sound Quality

These Nakamichi headset is tuned with bright treble and sufficient bass. They provide good music details and aggressive treble tone (like the raw cymbal tones) without sounding too boomy. The earbuds isolate noises sufficiently for me to enjoy orchestral music, which typically has plenty of soft passages.

3. Price

The BTSPORTS05 is one of the cheapest wireless headsets for sports I have reviewed. It also has a 6-hour usage time, making it one of the better-value sports headsets.

Operations and Connectivity

To turn on or off the headset, you need to press and hold the in-line middle button for a very long time. Similarly, to change tracks, be sure to hold the up or down button a little longer and wait a second before the track gets changed. There is no such lag when controlling the volume, so I guess Nakamichi is more prudent to make sure the user does not trigger the actions accidentally.

As the headset supports apt-X, the audio quality is almost lossless, as far as my ears can tell. But I do find the connectivity is not as smooth-sailing as other wireless headsets. When connected to the Alcatel Flash 2 review unit during runs, I find there are occasional audio breaks and distortion.

The thing about Bluetooth is that the experiences vary with equipment and users. It could be due to the music device, or due to interferences from other devices nearby. Sometimes, it works fabulous for a long time, then another day, it would just drive me crazy. And this applies to many other Bluetooth headsets that I’ve reviewed, including the Jabra Sport Pulse which I bought almost a year ago. Maybe I can deduce that the BTSPORTS05 Bluetooth chip is more sensitive to interferences.

Would I Buy It?

Yes I would! My primary issue would have to be the Bluetooth connectivity, which works fine most of the time. If you truly needed a better wireless solution for sports, there are other headsets that I have reviewed, at double the price of this Nakamichi headset. Do check out Jaybird X2 or Jabra Sport Coach.

The Nakamichi NEP-BTSPORTS05 Bluetooth headset retails for S$129 inclusive of GST and comes in 2 colours – Black and Green. They are available at all Sprint-Cass outlets, Mustafa Centre and TANGS Orchard.

Could you check whether other Bluetooth devices can be found on the Bootcamp Win10? If yes, did you switch on pairing mode on the headset? Power off, then hold the power button and do not release until you hear the voice prompts “pairing”.

I’ve got quite an issue with the battery life for this product. Went down to the supplier to change it 6 times and it’s still the same! SIX times! My first unit is going strong with the battery and can really last up to 6 hours, but the volume buttons are not working… Moving on, every single set from the 2nd unit I’ve gotten till the current 7th unit, the earpiece dies around the 3 hr mark. The supplier said it is due to the high quality and “high intensity bass” tracks I’m using. I’m running high quality tracks (nothing below 320 kbps), but my songs are not bass heavy. Tried following the supplier’s advice and on the unit to the lowest volume setting, but it still dies less than 4 hrs… Wonder if the on-board controls are leeching the power away as the first unit with defective on-board controls lasted for 6 hrs… Got this to last the time and distance but this can’t even last a whole marathon run!